Battle of Xinye (208)

The Battle of Xinye was fought in 208 AD between the armies of Cao Cao and Liu Bei during Cao Cao's invasion of Jing Province. Liu Bei's strategist Zhuge Liang employed several strategies to thwart Cao Ren's efforts to destroy Liu Bei's fugitive army, and Cao Ren's 100,000-strong army was annihilated after a fire attack, a flood attack, and several ambushes. However, Cao Cao was able to take over Jing Province while Liu Bei and his army attempted to flee towards Jiangling.

Background
Following Imperial Protector of Jing Province Liu Biao's death in 208 AD, his scheming brother-in-law Cai Mao and wife Lady Cai hid the news of his passing from his eldest son and heir Liu Qi and made his younger son Liu Cong (Lady Cai's son) the new Imperial Protector. Fu Xuan, Kuai Yue, and Wang Can then persuaded the young ruler to surrender Jing Province to Cao Cao to avoid a war, and, upon hearing of this, Cao Cao marched his massive 500,000-strong army into Jing Province to destroy his rival warlord Liu Bei, who had been granted shelter and a command by the late Liu Biao. When Cao Cao and his army reached Wancheng, Liu Bei and his strategist Zhuge Liang agreed to relocate their army to Fancheng, and Zhuge Liang made plans to fight against Cao Cao's army. Guan Yu was sent with 1,000 troops to the White River to dam the river and prepare it for a flood attack, while Zhang Fei and another 1,000 troops would take up ambush positions. Zhao Zilong was sent with 3,000 troops to prepare a fire attack on Xinye, and Mi Fang and Liu Feng led 2,000 troops and prepared to ambush Cao Cao's army once the fires started in Xinye.

Battle
Cao Hong and Cao Ren and their 100,000 troops, preceded by Xu Chu and 3,000 mailed troops, marched towards Xinye, where they found Mi Fang and Liu Feng's forces. Deceived by the presence of a large number of flags, Xu Chu ordered a retreat, as he did not wish to fall into an ambush. Cao Ren assured him that the enemy troops were fictitious and ordered an advance, and, when Xu Chu returned, he did not find any of Liu Bei's troops at the same location. Cao Hong and Cao Ren then entered the deserted city of Xinye, but, at night, fires broke out in all quarters of the city, creating widespread panic and causing a deadly stampede. Zhao Yun's company then ambushed them as they fled, and Mi Fang and Liu Feng also sprung their trap, eliminating most of Cao Ren's command; the only survivors were scarred and burned. As Cao Ren's troops continued their retreat, they fell victim to Guan Yu's flood attack, and, at the Boling Ferry, they found the road barred by Zhang Fei's troops. Xu Chu fled before his fight with Zhang Fei could be decided, and Liu Bei and his army then crossed the river to the Fancheng side and burned their rafts and boats. Cao Ren and the remnants of his army went on to encamp at Xinye as Cao Hong reported the defeat to Cao Cao.

Aftermath
Furious at Zhuge Liang's newest victory over his massive armies, Cao Cao then prepared to assault Fancheng. Zhuge Liang advised Liu Bei to abandon Fancheng and take Xiangyang, and Guan Yu was sent to prepare boats as Sun Qian proclaimed to the people that Cao Cao was coming. However, Cai Mao and Zhang Yun betrayed the city over to Cao Cao, so Zhuge Liang decided to instead focus on taking Jiangling. Liu Bei and his army withdrew from Xiangyang as the newcomer Wei Yan challenged General Wen Ping to a battle inside of the city, having decried Cai Mao and Zhang Yun as traitors. Wei Yan fought all day and slew almost all of the enemy combatants before leaving the city in search of Liu Bei, whom he sought to serve. When he was unable to locate Liu Bei, he instead found refuge with Han Xuan, Prefect of Changsha. Liu Qi prepared boats for Liu Bei's army at Jiangling, and Liu Bei's army continued its retreat. Meanwhile, Cai Mao and Zhang Yun were made admirals of Cao Cao's navy; they brought 50,000 horsemen, 150,000 infantry, 80,000 marines, and 7,000s of ships into Cao Cao's massive armada. Cao Cao was later welcomed into Xiangyang with burning incense, and he named Kuai Yue Governor of Jiangling and Lord of Fancheng, while Wang Can and Fu Xuan were ennobled. Liu Cong was sent to serve as Imperial Protector of Qing Province in the north, but he refused to leave Jing Province, so Cao Cao had Yu Jin murder Lady Cai and Liu Cong, cementing his control over Jing Province.